Winston-Salem, NC -- What a way for a city to start the new year! Roughly 500 jobs will open in Winston-Salem over the course of the next three years.

Governor Perdue announced on Wednesday that Herbalife has decided it will move to the old Dell plant in Winston-Salem.

The decision to open a location in Winston-Salem came from initiatives by the city and state. Herbalife was also considering two locations in Atlanta, GA.

"They had many other states try to lure them to their communities because this isn't just about a manufacturing facility," said Perdue. "It's also about this company extends from Croatia to California, to 80 countries around the world."

Most of the jobs will be manufacturing positions and the average salary will be $40,000. The jobs will open over the course of three years starting in mid-2013. The company will add roughly 12 jobs in mid-2013, another 200 by 2014 and the remaining positions will be filled by 2015.

News 2's Liz Crawford spoke with Winston-Salem Mayor Allen Joines who said that Winston-Salem can expect more than 500 new jobs as a result of the announcement. Joines believes in the ripple effect and said that for every new job that comes to the area one or two new jobs will be created to provide services.

"From janitorial to landscaping to companies that keep the equipment going to truckers to suppliers of cardboard boxes, the whole bit," said Joines.

Since Herbalife has client's around the world, Joines thinks that if companies see boxes with a Winston-Salem address they may become interested in what the city has to offer.

Herbalife and its 500 employees will also add $100 million to the Winston-Salem tax base. The company sells nutrition, weight management and personal care products in more than 75 countries.